


bronze mirrors

by loaf-of-toast (vagarius)



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Friendship, Gen, Humor, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Insecure Leo Valdez, Leo Valdez-centric, Light Angst, no second giant war
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-07
Updated: 2019-07-07
Packaged: 2020-06-24 07:48:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,049
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19719316
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vagarius/pseuds/loaf-of-toast
Summary: Leo got the impression Percy Jackson didn't yell a lot; it only served to make Leo more petrified.or: a meeting, under different circumstances





	bronze mirrors

**Author's Note:**

> there are actually no bronze mirrors mentioned in the fic, in case you were wondering

Leo knew his luck was bad, but that didn't mean he expected to get chewed out by Percy Jackson so soon.

He figured he would get chewed out by someone eventually – that's typically how things go for him. But it usually takes a week or so. That's about how long it takes for people to realize annoying is Leo's default state and not just a passing craze.

Yet here he was, day _numero dos,_ getting reprimanded by Percy Jackson, who was obviously highly respected based on the awed stares Percy was getting and the disappointed ones Leo felt on his back. Leo got the impression Percy Jackson didn't yell a lot; it only served to make Leo more petrified. Like, _see all this anger? It's just for you! You earned it!_

"What were you thinking?" Percy shouted. Leo had a feeling the question was rhetorical. "The point is to _avoid_ the lava, not reach out and touch it! Did you want to get sent to the med bay on your second day?" Because of course Percy Jackson recognized him as the new kid. Of course.

Okay, so maybe Leo _had_ earned the scolding, but he never had to worry about getting burned before. After promising himself to never use Plan C, he had still allowed himself to benefit from its passive power, reaching for hot objects without thought and stubbing out cigarettes with his fingers to impress the street kids. He could defend his actions, he knew, but not without revealing his secret and possibly sounding crazy. _No need to yell at me, I can't be burned. Want to see?_ Yeah, like _that_ would turn out well. If this was the price for keeping his secret and his outward sanity, he could take a little yelling. It wouldn't be the first time.

"So?" Percy finished.

"So, what?" Leo replied. He belatedly hoped he didn't just spark another tirade.

"So, what do you have to say?"

Leo blinked. Generically, he said, "It won't happen again. I've learned my lesson."

Something told him Percy didn't fully believe him but also found it useless to grill him any longer. He walked back to wherever he magically popped out from, while Leo took one look at the dumbstruck faced around him and announced, "I'm going back to Cabin 9." No one stopped him, and he wasn't sure if that made him feel better or worse.

Leo later did his best to avoid the guy. He would hide within the midst of his siblings, or would stick himself to his best friend Piper McLean whenever he could. Leo was pretty sure the only reason there were no rumors about them dating was because Piper was way out of his league. She was beautiful and could kick him into next week, and while this was more or less Leo's type, he would never make a move on Piper. She was his honorary sister ever since they stepped out of Coach Hedge's office covered in car grease and smelling like battery acid, and she had cheekily asked him, _What's next?_ It was honestly one of the best moments of his life.

Right now, though, Piper was trying to learn new moves with her dagger, Katoptris, and Leo was trying to be a nuisance. "Valdez," Piper grit out, "don't you ever _stop?_ "

"Still no off switch, Beauty Queen." He grabbed another pipe cleaner – _ha, pipe cleaner, a pipe-er_ – and added another part to his… whatever it was becoming. "Probably would've stayed somewhere longer if there was."

Piper rolled her eyes, which was a common occurrence. "I think you can handle getting lost just this once, Leo. Scram. Go fiddle somewhere else. I'll tell you a juicy Aphrodite Cabin story later if you do."

If anyone were to ask, Leo would say it was the promise of a good story that got him to leave. In reality, Leo knew when Piper wanted alone time, and Leo had guaranteed very little of that post-Percy Jackson. "I'm holding you to that," Leo said, then finally left the arena.

He ran almost straight into Percy Jackson, after that.

Percy's eyes widened minutely before narrowing at the sight of him. Leo hastily stuffed his pipe cleaner contraption into one of his pockets then stood up as tall as he could. Which wasn't much.

"Hi," Percy said, after a long moment, and Leo realized he was trying to make _small talk_ with him.

"Hi." Leo looked down. Percy's sneakers were ratty and slightly water-logged. "You don't have a speech prepared this time? Tragic."

Percy's eye briefly twitched before his whole body deflated. He looked more like the teenage boy he was supposed to be, and less like the revered hero he was told to be. "Look, I didn't mean to yell at you. But what you did really was dangerous and as a senior camper I – "

"Stop," Leo interrupted, momentarily horrified for his own safety. "Just – stop. I've disappointed enough people in my life that one more isn't gonna break me. What I was about to do really was dangerous – " _for most people,_ Leo mentally added – "and I understand why you would feel responsible. So just let me be embarrassed about getting yelled at by the big hero for a couple more days and then I'll show everyone my true Leo-awesomeness, okay? No harm, no foul."

Percy looked skeptical, but eventually said, "Okay, fine," which Leo translated as, _that's reasonable, but I still don't think you have all your marbles,_ which is probably true, anyway. After running away six times, people tend to lose things.

Leo huffed out a breath he didn't realize was holding.

After that, Leo started seeing a lot more of Percy Jackson.

As promised, Leo showed off his awesomeness a couple days later via commiserating with the Stolls (Connor was surprisingly nice to him, in a manic-grin sort of way). Travis was telling him some of the more elaborate details of lock-picking outside of the Big House when Percy Jackson walked up next to them.

He nodded to Travis before finally noticing Leo standing there with him. "Hey." Percy blinked. "Uh, how has it been?"

 _It's been a couple of days,_ Leo thought. _You can stop the small talk. Please ignore me._

Which hadn't been a common thought from Leo in a long time. It seemed to be increasing in frequency since coming to camp. Travis had no such thoughts. "Waiting for Connor's verdict," he said. "Valdez here got off easy, just one of Chiron's disappointed looks before Chiron dragged Connor inside. Probably because he's a counselor and is supposed to set an _example,_ or something."

Percy snorted. "Should I wait then?" he asked.

Travis laughed. "Probably."

Leo stayed silent.

Connor came through the doorway a second later, looking like a convict who had just got off easy, which he kind of was. He threw out his arms like a street performer about to belt into song. After a dramatic pause, he announced, "Just two days of weapon shed sorting, I think Chiron is getting soft." He proceeded to high-five his brother and then give Leo a fist-bump. "Oh, hey Percy. What'd you do this time?"

Percy rolled his eyes. The action had nothing on Piper's, but Leo could respect its charm. "Unlike you two, I don't actively seek out trouble."

Connor said, "Yeah, sure," while Travis made a hand motion like he was batting away a fly. Connor fist-bumped Leo once more as the two brothers skipped away, leaving Leo alone with Percy Jackson.

"The Stolls, huh?" Percy mused. He blatantly missed Leo's discomfort; like, wow, talk about _rude._ "They're quite some company."

"We have compatible skill sets," Leo explained. There was more to it than that, but if Leo thought about it, he wasn't sure if he'd like his own conclusions. Thinking was great and all, but thinking about human relationships never got him very far. Except for that time it led him back home, and – he wasn't going back there. Not now. Not to back then.

Percy raised both eyebrows. His face seemed to scream _yeah, okay,_ and if Leo were talking to literally anyone else he would have gasped dramatically before launching into a colorful defense of his Stoll-level skills. But this was Percy Jackson, the guy who yelled at him in front of half the camp, so Leo simply shrugged and walked away.

The movement felt cautious and wrong, but when had Leo ever felt right?

Leo was a fighter, but not in the way he needed to be.

Outlasting foster parents wasn't quite the same as winning a spar.

He knew, if given the chance, he could make a machine to fight for him. Traps, cranes, claw machines. Give him some tools and parts, and he could do almost anything. Give him a sword, and all there would be is Leo Valdez, except he'd have a sword. (He also knew, if push came to shove, he always had Plan C. He'd been thinking that a lot more lately, despite his promise to himself. Was his resolve really that weak?)

In other words: Leo _hated_ sword fighting. And he really hated Percy Jackson, because he was _brilliant_ at it.

Smooth, fluid, and deadly. Even without the supposed water powers, he was a force to be reckoned with. Leo could easily imagine him slaying Titans and fighting war gods. Leo, on the other hand, probably looked like a Latino chicken trying to fly.

Leo's luck had always been bad, so when the Demeter kid he was sparring knocked Leo's sword away for the fourth time in so many minutes, he was morbidly unsurprised to see Percy Jackson making his way over.

"Need help?" Percy asked, and despite everyone fighting with very sharp blades around him, he swore he could still feel all their stares. Their eyes felt worse than any knife.

"I'm _fine,"_ Leo growled, unintentionally bitter. "Could you, like, go away now?"

The Demeter kid looked comically offended. Like, _you're sending away Percy Jackson? Seriously?_

Percy's face did some mild acrobatics. Then he did as he was told, going to find a different person to spar with and give unwanted assistance to.

That last part might just be Leo.

Sometimes, he remembered the secret that got him yelled at in the first place.

Well, not sometimes. More like all the time. Constantly. Leo's mind never really quieted or slowed, which meant the thought had a lot of chances to repeat itself. _This would be cooler with some rubber bands. I could totally shrink this without the heat gun. Connor would love this, I have to show him later. Ugh, I could totally melt this down myself. Why is it so cold in here? Why don't I just raise my temperature?_

_Remember Mom? Remember Rosa?_

_Ah, that's right. Fire. Death. Diablo._

After learning about his godly parent, Leo had secretly hoped there would be someone else like him. Someone who hadn't only caused death and destruction; someone who had _control._

Apparently, the only other known person to possess the ability was Thomas Faynor. Who was long dead. And had also started the Great Fire of London. Talk about control.

Percy was a nice guy, which made Leo's discomfort all the more uncomfortable.

Leo couldn't just _tell_ anyone this, though, let alone Percy. What would he even say? _Be more of a jerk! Your kindness makes my life more miserable than it already is!_ Yeah, no thanks. It would probably make its way to Chiron, and Chiron would send Leo to a demigod shrink. Or maybe Coach Hedge would catch wind of it and send him flying with his baseball bat to try to hit the ridiculousness away. It wouldn't be the first time someone tried to beat metaphysical out of him.

Besides, his life wasn't even all that miserable anymore. Sure, he got humiliated his second day at camp, and sure, he happened to suck at all things demigod, and sure, he still managed to be the odd one out at a godly summer camp full of half-humans, but it could always be worse. He could be back in school, struggling through reading books and racist teachers. He could be starving, alone in the sewers. He could be back with Teresa, half-alive and –

 _Whoa,_ Leo thought. _You can stop it right there, brain. No need to relive Teresa. Just be glad you're not the only demigod with weird scars._

The point was, Leo had something here. He had Piper. More recently, he had the Stolls. But he also had Percy Jackson, and he made Leo want to hide like he was six again, after the teacher called him slow like it was the biggest insult Leo could possibly understand.

Not just because of that initial encounter, Leo was beginning to realize. That was part of it, but the real zinger was that Percy Jackson was everything Leo wasn't: strong, respected, _good_. With every reminder, the insecurities and the memories he worked so hard to tamp down clawed closer to the surface until his skin practically tingled with it.

He supposed that was what got him to this point: backing away from an Ares camper at the edge of the woods.

His latest display of Leo-awesomeness might have also had something to with it. He could only hope the Stolls hid their involvement behind plausible deniability; the Ares-camper-backfire really was on Leo and Leo alone. A small part of him wished it wasn't, even though the thought really wasn't fair, as the Ares camper Leo didn't remember the name of – _Mike? Andrew, maybe?_ – backed Leo closer and closer to the stream.

Leo couldn't swim. 

(More than that, the thought of being submerged already made it hard to breathe. Teresa didn't only give him scars to remember her by. Gods, why was that woman coming back now? Why were they all coming back now?)

"Scared?" Mike-Andrew-maybe taunted. He took another step forward, and Leo took another step back, his left foot landing on the waterline.

Leo put on his brightest smile; he probably looked more than a bit manic. "Me? Scared? Of course not!" Water splashed into his shoe. "Now why don't we talk this out _away_ from the water, shall we?"

Mike-Andrew-maybe furrowed his eyebrows at that. After a moment, his eyes glinted. His hand reached out, like he was going to shove Leo into the stream, and then he saw –

– _the glint of a ring that wasn't there, a perfectly manicured hand_ –

– and before Leo knew it, he had a hand around the camper's wrist, and suddenly the other kid twisted away with a yelp, looking at Leo then at his wrist and then at Leo again, before jogging out of the woods and leaving Leo to fall to knees, wet shoe forgotten.

He stayed like that until Piper found him, hours or minutes or maybe days later, with the Stolls and, gods forbid, _Percy Jackson,_ trailing behind her like lost dogs. Piper took one look at Leo and then one look at the stream behind him before her eyes momentarily hardened, kaleidoscope colors stilling like the calm before the storm.

Then her eyes softened once more, and she coaxed Leo into standing, and with her arm around his waist he could almost pretend not to feel the other campers' stares, boring into him all over again.

He apologized to the Ares kid.

Not for the original Leo-awesomeness, but for the _after._ The Ares kid looked stunned and kind of angry, but in the end he nodded, while Leo took a glance at his healed wrist. There were no marks, thankfully, but Leo knew that was less about Leo and more about the food of the gods.

Leo was back to hiding in the midst of siblings and sticking to Piper, but his siblings looked at him like a particularly confusing blueprint while Piper's eyes kept swirling and swirling and swirling, and it was really testing his inner introvert. Only the Stolls treated him exactly the same, with fist-bumps galore and the latest thieving tips.

Leo found himself in the forges during the campfire, miraculously alone for once. The hum of machines soothed him like the world's greatest lullaby never could.

So of course Percy Jackson had to ruin it.

Leo sighed dramatically when he noticed him. "Don't you have a girlfriend to be with? Songs to sing?" He continued to hammer the sheet of metal, not bothering to hide his displeasure.

Percy snorted. "Don't you?"

"If you’re talking about Piper, she's basically my sister. Like the hot older sister people befriend you just to try and date."

Percy snorted again. "But you'll fend them off, right?"

"Obviously," Leo said. "Anyone who wants to date Beauty Queen will have to get through these." Leo took a break from hammering to show off his non-existent guns. Percy laughed, and Leo hated the tiny burst of pride in his chest. Percy stayed silent for a few moments after that, but evidently didn't escape the demigod ADHD curse, and finally blurted out what Leo suspected he meant to say in the first place.

"When I first learned I was a demigod," Percy started, "I blew up the toilets."

Leo scoffed. For once, there was no hint of amusement in his voice. "But you were what, twelve?" Leo pointed out. "And then you saved the world. When I was twelve, I was stubbing out cigarettes for the street kids."

Percy didn't respond.

"And now I'm fifteen," Leo continued, "and supposedly some sort of Greek mythical hero. I don't feel particularly Greek or hero-y right now." Leo paused. "Honestly, I'm surprised I'm not dead."

"How did you – " Percy started.

"No," Leo interrupted. He was not explaining this. No form of demigod-losing-control story was going to make Leo fess up to what he could actually do. Plan C would follow him to the grave, however soon that was. Leo was never meant to live long, and learning he was demigod only cemented that fact. Losing control proved it even more.

Percy frowned. It wasn't a good look for him. The mischievous lines of his face turned solemn, and his green eyes clouded over like a nighttime ocean. "Leo…"

"No," Leo repeated. "This conversation is over."

Percy opened his mouth, but no sound came out, and he left Leo alone in the forges.

Leo kind of hated Percy Jackson.

He was just so good at being _good,_ and all Leo was good at was being, well, _bad._

Leo remembered the way all his elementary school teachers would look at him, the things they'd tell the other teachers, like he was too dumb to understand the words being said in front of his face. He remembered foster parents and social workers, who would look at his eyes and his curls and his smile and decide he was trouble. There was even a time he tried not smiling, tried to fade into the background and be _normal,_ for once, but all that led to was pushing and shoving and his teeth in the dirt. The only one who ever really praised him was his _mamá,_ and she was gone, her ashes on Leo's hands.

He didn't doubt Percy had his share of being pushed into the literal and metaphorical dirt – every demigod tended to – but he came out greater, stronger, while Leo just… hadn't.

(Once, Leo came out and got a belt to the stomach. Which, not quite the same concept, but ambiguity, right?)

"Leo," Piper said, breaking him out of his thoughts. They were sitting on the bleachers that circled the far half of the arena, Piper taking a break from sparring practice while Leo was simply avoiding it. "You’re staring."

"Am I?" Leo asked. He was. His hands moved on their own accord, building who-knows-what, but his eyes were on Percy, like a fly to one of those zappy lamps that kill flies. "Hey, Beauty Queen," Leo rambled. "Do you remember that time I messed with Coach's megaphone? Do you think I could do something similar to Mr. D?"

"I think Mr. D has something a bit more powerful than a baseball bat to whack you with." Piper responded.

"I can take it," Leo countered. "I'm a big boy."

"Sure," Piper said. "Leo – "

"Or maybe I could add sound effects to some of the Apollo kids' bows. Who only likes a boring _twang,_ anyway?"

"Leo," Piper said, "what are you doing?"

"Brainstorming." That wasn't what Piper meant, and they both knew it.

"Leo," Piper said, one more time.

"Oh, look," Leo said, bringing the contraption in his hands to eye level. "It's a… flying boat. It looks like it'd be good for mail. Like the owls in _Harry Potter._ "

" _Leo,_ " Piper repeated, and oh, this was _serious._ "Why have you been staring daggers at Percy Jackson?"

Leo wanted to joke, he really did. Something like, _he has such dreamy muscles, what person wouldn't stare?_ Or maybe, _have you seen the way he handles a sword? I wish he did the same to mine._ But what came out of his mouth was, "Because I kind of hate him," and now Piper was glaring daggers at _him._

"What?" Piper asked.

"I kind of hate him." Leo forlornly flicked his mini-boat into the air, where it remained floating above their heads. "Look, I have nothing against him, but he yelled at me and then apologized and his concern freaks me out and he's such a great guy and it's _infuriating,_ okay? I just. I don't want to deal with him."

Piper blinked. "So what you're saying," she clarified, "is that you hate him because he tries to be nice to you?"

Leo shrugged. "Pretty much." It wasn't the whole truth, but it was more truth than Leo usually allowed himself. "I'm going back to the forges."

He plucked his boat out of the air and did just that.

"So I heard you snub out cigarettes for a living," Connor said with a carefree grin. "You want to show me?"

"You have a cigarette?" Leo shot back. He was making a second flying boat at Travis's insistence. He wanted to prank the Demeter cabin again, but Katie Gardiner was getting used to his tricks. A flying boat the size of paper airplane was apparently perfect for what he had planned next, and Leo was never one to turn down the chance to make things. The one currently in his hands had a mini confetti cannon.

They were sitting on Connor's bunk in the Hermes cabin, waiting for Travis to return from the counselor meeting in the Big House. Travis and Connor were technically co-counselors, but for them that just meant splitting the work. Leo wondered how the other counselors did managing all that on their own.

Not a second later, Connor brandished a cigarette in Leo's face, grin widening. Leo snorted. "You have a lighter? I can't exactly show you on an unlit cigarette."

Connor paused. His grin didn't waver. "I was kind of hoping _you_ would light it."

Leo froze. _No,_ Leo thought. _Nuh uh. Nope._ But Connor's carefree grin held no judgement, no pressure. Leo could call Connor delusional and Connor wouldn't believe him, but he would play along. More importantly, he wouldn't ask again. Leo wasn't sure how he knew that, but he was confident that if he so wished, Connor would let him bring Plan C to the grave, just like he promised himself.

But he'd already broken that promise, hadn't he? The day he burned that Ares kid. What was one more broken promise in the mess that was Leo's life?

Instead of answering, Leo held out a finger gun, and felt the heat move through his hands like pins and needles. Then a small flame erupted on the tip of his pointer finger, dancing like a candle. He lit the cigarette, then blew his finger out like he imagined James Bond might do to a real gun.

Connor looked impressed. Before he could say anything, Leo asked, "Are you actually smoking that?"

Connor shrugged. "Nah," he said. "Did you want to?"

Leo shrugged too. Without preamble, he closed his fingertips on the end of the cigarette. He let go after a few seconds. The cigarette was no longer burning.

"Wicked," Connor said, shoving the cigarette back wherever he got it from. "Thanks for showing me." He sounded sincere, which was a lot, coming from a Stoll.

Leo smiled, small and grateful. He wasn't sure if Connor was aware of it, but that was a lot, coming from Leo.

Connor violently ruffled his hair, after that, and Leo figured he got the message.

Piper was still Leo's number one, his one and only _hermana,_ but the Stolls had grown on him. They weren't technically his siblings, godly or otherwise, but when had biological family ever done him good? So Leo had no problem coming to their defense, even if it was against the one and only Percy Jackson, who probably thought Leo was a failure of a demigod.

"Look, what's done is done, okay?" Leo said, pushing his hair out of his eyes. He needed a haircut soon. "The Athena cabin got sludged, one of them punched Travis, and then you magic-ed their books back into reading condition. Do we really need to take this any farther?"

"Were you in on the plan?" Percy accused. _Great,_ Leo thought. _I'm getting chewed out by the big hero again._ "Don't you understand the value of things? Annabeth told me how much those books are worth, and if Malcolm hadn't noticed in time they could've been ruined forever. Or do you just not care?"

"Honestly?" Leo answered, knowing he'd regret it. "No, I don't. I understand the value of things, but sometimes they get taken away anyway, and you live with it. Travis and Connor understand that, too." Leo breathed. "They only meant to hit the outside of the cabin. They didn't realize the windows were open, and that the sludge would reach the inside. Do you really think they would've destroyed the books on purpose?"

Percy's silence said enough.

"Wow, okay," Leo said, unable to keep the hostility out of his voice. "Whatever. Can't we just, let this go? It's not like they set them on fire like it's _Fahrenheit 451._ "

"But _you_ could, couldn't you?"

Leo's mouth dropped open. Percy did _not_ just go there. "You did _not_ just go there."

Percy looked conflicted, now, like he didn't like his own words but couldn't get himself to regret saying them. "I want an apology," he said, eventually. "From you and the Stolls."

Leo hadn't actually had a hand in this particular plan, but he wasn't going to correct him. "Deal," Leo agreed. "No Chiron."

"No Chiron."

Leo grinned. He hoped it was unnerving.

Things started looking up after that.

Percy Jackson stopped trying to talk to him, Travis found him a celestial bronze hammer during one of his weapon-sorting punishments, and Leo managed to convince his siblings to help him build a _real_ flying boat, big enough to house a few or so demigods, after discovering Bunker 9.

Oh man, did he _love_ Bunker 9.

It was like the Cabin 9 forge on steroids, decked out in old blueprints and work benches, complete with catwalks and rigging so complex that Leo nearly cried at its beauty. To him, Long Island Sound had _nothing_ on this: the gorgeous, mechanical chaos he found in the side of a wall of rock.

Yeah, that part had been weird.

Getting lost in the woods? Creepy, but whatever. Being drawn toward some weird energy in the woods? _More_ creepy, but he was already lost in the woods, what did he have to lose? Putting his hand on a giant slab of solid rock and unconsciously heating it up like it was one of Connor's lukewarm coffees, and watching as the solid slab turned red and swung open noiselessly like some mechanic's wet dream? _Very_ creepy, but also really cool, and Leo had always been a curious kid.

And if the noiseless, hidden door was a wet dream, then what lay beyond it was equivalent to three strip clubs and six shelves of expensive porno. Probably more.

Which was a strange comparison, but Leo wasn't going to bother thinking of a better one when he could be exploring, instead.

Apparently it had been an old wartime base, of sorts. Chiron refused to give more details, including the conditions to open it, and Leo figured Chiron knew more about Leo and the bunker than he let on. Leo wasn't going to mention it.

Over the next few weeks, the cavernous Bunker 9 became filled with the whirring of drills and gears, the smacking of hammers, and the hum of working demigods. Some non-Hephaestus campers had also become curious, and Leo watched as the bunker transformed into a massive creative space, seeing campers covered in paint and glue almost as often as those covered in oil and grease.

His mom would've loved it, Leo thought one day. It was more than just a mechanical shop, or a garage. It was a place to _create,_ to think and build and make things happen, impossible things.

 _You will accomplish many great things, mijo._ _Wonderful things._

Leo stayed away from the bunker the rest of the day.

Leo was halfway done with his flying ship when the end of summer approached.

Leo wasn't leaving, of course. As soon as he heard that he could stay year-round, there had been no question. He had nowhere to go back to and everything to hide from. He even IM-ed Coach Hedge, begging him to convince his social worker that he was still at Wilderness School. He wasn't confident in Coach's acting ability, but his social worker wouldn't question Coach's claim, even if he suspected it was fraudulent. _Leo Valdez? Still in one, contained place? Please stop talking before I'm legally inclined to disbelieve you._

A lot of his siblings were leaving, though. Piper was leaving, wanting to make amends with her ultra-famous dad. Leo couldn't blame her; her only other family was an all-powerful entity and said entity's other children. Leo would choose the ultra-famous, kind-of-clueless dad if he had the choice, too. Luckily (or unluckily, Leo supposed, since staying year-round couldn't mean anything good), the Stolls would still be at camp with him.

Well. Most of the time.

"Travis wants to try school again," Connor explained, during the end-of-summer campfire. "He and a few other campers managed to set up a program that could bus them to school and back. They'd be exempt from the usual activities, if they want to be, so they can focus on studying."

Leo figured he shouldn't ask, but he wanted to know. Connor would realize he was holding back, anyway. "Why aren't you?"

Connor laughed, but his eyes held no mirth. "Someone has to keep the Hermes Cabin in line, right?"

That was only a very small part of the reason, but Leo didn't press, and Connor didn't elaborate. "What about you?" Connor asked. "Would you go back to school if you could?"

Leo thought about it. His mom always said that Leo would be the one to accomplish great things, to go to the good college and to get the dream job. To bring their family out of the social pit they had been birthed into. But his schooling was spotty at best, and as much as he _wanted_ an education, he knew, deep down, traditional schooling had never been for him. "Nah," Leo answered with a wave of his hand. "Maybe I'll get a GED at some point, but not in the immediate future. School was never really for me."

"I get that," Connor said, looking wistful. Then he saw something a little ways away, and clapped Leo on the shoulder, saying, "I've gotta go now, man. Counselor stuff. And good luck."

"Good luck for _what?_ " Leo asked his retreating back. Was he talking about the song he promised Piper? His question was answered a few seconds later, when Percy Jackson sat on his log an arm's length away.

"Hi," Percy said. Here, in the light of the campfire, slouched on a log of questionable quality, Percy Jackson almost looked like a normal, non-godly teenager, like when he had first apologized to Leo, awkward and oddly deflated.

"Hey," Leo responded. He wasn't going to be a jerk on Percy's last night at camp; he was notoriously a summer-only camper, despite his powerful parentage. Leo could respect that, even if the guy still infuriated him.

Percy let out a breath through his nose. "Look, I just – " Percy huffed again, interrupting himself. "We started on the wrong foot and just kept hopping on it, and I didn't want to leave with you thinking I didn't like you. Because I do."

"Really?" Leo sing-songed. "Because I _don't_ like you."

_So much for not being a jerk, Leo. You're doing great._

"That's… fine, I guess." Percy sighed. His lungs had to be irritated with all that irregular breathing. "I've obviously hit quite a few sore spots, and I'm sorry for that."

Leo's entire face scrunched up. It must've looked comical, but Percy didn't comment. He let his face relax. "Okay, so it's not actually that I don't like you. You're a cool dude, and a good person, and an amazing fighter, but you also do a really good job at reminding me of everything I'm _not,_ and it's just. It's irritating, and it pisses me off, that someone has it together so well."

Percy smirked. "I wasn't always the big hero, you know. I was a scrawny kid with a bad stepfather and an even worse reputation. We aren't all that different."

"That's just it!" Leo shouted, to Percy's evident surprise. "Pretty much every demigod here got a crappy hand in life, and they all still managed to turn out just fine! Sure, you weren't always the big hero, and you probably didn't even want to be, but you stepped up to plate and got yourself together! But _me?_ " Leo exclaimed, pointing a finger at his own chest. "All I did was run around for seven years! And when I finally find a place full of people just like me, I _still_ manage to be the odd one out! I'm the black sheep wherever I go. That isn't meant to change for me."

"Leo…"

"And _you,_ Percy Jackson," Leo moved his hand until his finger pointed at Percy instead, "you're everything I was never destined to be."

For a moment, the only thing Leo heard was his own heavy breathing, and the blood rushing through his ears.

And then: "I didn't realize."

Leo held his breath, then let it out all at once. "You weren't supposed to."

"Oh," Percy replied.

"Well," Leo continued, overly cheery, "now you know! And there's nothing you can really do about it, so we can go back to ignoring each other like reasonable demigods."

Percy opened his mouth again, then seemed to realize this was a losing battle. "Okay," Percy conceded, which, wow. Leo wasn't expecting that. "But can we try again next summer? At not ignoring each other?"

Leo thought about everything that had happened this summer. If things could change so much in a couple months, then how much could change in a school year?

(How many times had Leo wanted a second chance, just like this, only for it to be denied, again and again? How many times had _Percy_ wanted the very same thing?

And just like that, Leo's resolve crumbled.)

"I'd be down," Leo said, "to try again."

Percy smiled, young and crooked and relieved. "Cool." He held out a fist. Leo bumped it with his own.

Percy stood, the moon and the fire glinting off his skin, and once again looked the part of the hero. "You know," Percy added, "only a good person would give someone they hated another chance." He smiled again, and it looked like the smile Leo saw in the mirror, sometimes: small and sad and self-regretting. "I'm not sure if I would have."

With that, Percy finally walked away, leaving Leo with a lot of reflecting to do.

But first, he owed Piper a song.

**Author's Note:**

> this started as me being inspired by [this](https://www.theodysseyonline.com/pjo-vs-hoo) and wanting to try out hoo style writing. it eventually turned into a sort of character study with my own style spilling in (especially toward the latter parts), but i think i did an okay enough job with what i set out to do. thanks for reading!!


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